Pajama leg construction



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United States Patent O 3,381,311 PAJAMA LEG CONSTRUCTION Walter S. Wormser, Highland Park, Ill., assignor to W. S. Wormser Company, Chicago, Ill., a partnership Filed June 14, 1965, Ser. No. 463,778 2 Claims. (Cl. 2-270) ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE A childs convertible pajama leg construction is provided which selectively serves either as a neat anklethugging sleeve or as a sock-like enclosure for protecting the childs foot. The anklet sleeve is defined by two elongated pieces joined along longitudinal seams and being circumferentially stretchable, with one piece having a manipulable cuff formed thereon and arranged in one position to hug the sleeve and in another position to serve as a closure for the sock.

This invention relates to a convertible leg construction for pajamas and the like, and more particularly relates to an improved pajama leg construction which permits of selective manipulation so that the foot of the wearer will be either exposed or covered.

It is desirable that bed clothes for children, such as pajamas, be provided with foot covering portions that may be selectively used for foot protection in very cold weather, or when children are ill and are to be protected from cold floors and from chilling. This broad concept and idea generally is not new, but a simple, practical and inexpensive construction has not yet been -found or commercialized. Thus, prior to the invention herein, regular pajamas for children above the age of infants normally did not provide such a feature.

It has been known to provide infants pajamas with preformed foot enclosing features. However, such pajamas have not been selectively convertible so as to permit wearing the pajamas with the feet exposed, as children desire to do except under the unusual circumstances when foot covering is desired. Others have heretofore sought to provide a convertible foot covering construction in garments, but all such prior constructions Ihave been characterized by complexity of construction, bulkiness in storage of the foot covering elements when they were not in use, and inability to provide a practical, simple, inexpensive and attractive construction that would lend itself to acceptance by the purchasing public and wearers of garments, or to effective commercialization.

Thus, the principal object of this invention is to provide an improved, convertible, pajama leg construction which permits of selective use either as ordinary pajamas or as pajamas provided with a sock-like enclosure for protecting the foot of the wearer, and wherein the improved pajama leg construction is characterized by simplicity and inexpensiveness of construction, and by attractiveness of appearance.

Another object of this invention is to provide a simple sleeve construction for the lower portion of a pajama leg, with a manipulable cuff on said sleeve, by means of which is provided a convertible pajama leg construction that is inexpensive to construct, is effective in operation, and is attractive in appearance.

Further objects and advantages of this invention will :become apparent as the following description proceeds and the features of novelty which characterize this invention will be pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming part of this specification.

A preferred embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is an illustration of a child wearing the pajama construction of this invention, and showing the foot construction lboth when it operates to enclose the childs foot and as it appears when the foot enclosure is not being used.

FIG. 2 is an inverted fragmentary view showing the layout of cut segments of cloth and sections thereof which when sewn together provide the improved pajama leg construction of this application;

FIG. 3 is a lfragmentary elevational view of the lower terminus of the improved pajama leg construction when fully assembled, and with the segments thereof in a first position where said terminus defines a tubular sleeve;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary view similar to FIG. 3 but showing the segments of the pajama leg construction in their second, or alternate, position where said terminus defines a foot-receiving enclosure or sock;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary cross-section view taken on line 5 5 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary cross-section view taken on line 6-6 of FIG. 4; and

FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 5 but illustrating a modified construction.

Referring now to the drawing, there is shown in FIG. 1 a child wearing a pajama garment that is generally indicated at 10, and which is provided with the improved convertible leg construction of this invention. The garment 10 in FIG. 1 defines -pajama legs 12 and 14 respectively for the left and right legs, and at the lower end of each pajama leg there is generally shown at S the convertible leg construction of this invention. The childs left leg is shown with the converti-ble leg portion S in the form of an anklet cufiing 16, and the right leg 14 is shown with the convertible leg portion S in position to serve as a foot receiving sock 18.

The condition of the lower end of the convertible leg portion S when it is attached to serve as a cutfed anklet 16 is shown in FIGS. 3 and 5. The convertible leg portion S generally constitutes an elongated tubular sleeve of a fabric material that is stretchable in a direction circumferentially of the sleeve, and the upper tubular end of portion S is attached thereat to the lower end of the pajama leg construction in a manner well known in the art.

Referring now to FIGS. 3 and 5, the lower end of leg construction S is shown to be formed of two elongated pieces of material, one serving as a front piece 20 and the other serving as a back piece 22. These pieces of material are secured to each other along their longitudinal edges by oppositely Iarranged seams 24 and 26. The lower free terminus of the front member 20 is indicated at 28 and the lower free terminus of the back piece 22 is indicated at 30. The back piece 22 is of a length such that its terminus 30 is located at a level below terminus 28 of the front piece. The lengths of piece 20 and piece 22 is so selected that the sleeve S defined thereby may be retroverted and cuffed or aecordian pleated to serve as the cuffed sleeve as indicated at 16 in FIG. l, or may be extended to deline the foot enclosing sock 18 as seen in FIG. l.

The front piece 20 is provided with a hem 32 secured by a line of stitching 32a, and a fastening element, such as button 34, is provided attached to the hemmed front piece 20 at a point substantially midway between the seams 24 and 26. The back piece 22 is retroverted exteriorly to define an elongated cuff 36 located outwardly of piece 22 and which is of a length to have its longitudinal ends secure to and extend :between the seams 24 and 26. 'Ihe height, or width, of the cuff 36 extends from the fold line 30 at the free terminus of back piece 22 to an upper edge 38 which is spaced above the level of the fastener 34, as can best Ibe seen in FIG. 5. The cuff 36 is provided with a hem 40 secured by a line of stitching 40a. The hem 40 as shown in FIG. 5 is located exteriorly of the cuff 36 so as to provide a neat appearance when in the position of FIG. 6, although this hem may be, optionally, located interiorly of the cuff 36.

The he'mmed cuff 36 is also provided with a fastener element such as a slit or buttonhole 42 located about half way between the seams 24 and 26 and located substantially 4the same distance from fold line 30 as is the spacing of lbuttom 3-4 from fold line 30. This provides that when the cuff 36 is in the alternate position shown in FIG. 6, then the fastening elements 34 and 42 are properly aligned for fasteningy cooperation.

The seams 24 and 26 extend axially along the length of the sleeve S in generally parallel fashion, but at the lower ends of the sleeve S the seams 24 and 26 are so formed that they taper inwardly and downwardly toward each other as indicated at 24a and 26a. These inwardly directed seam segments 24a and 26a begin generally at about the level of the edge 38 of cuff 36 and extend through the width of cuff 36 down to edge 30. These inwardly tapering seams 24a and 26a serve as part of the means for tending to keep the cuff 36 in the two selected positions that are seen in FIGS. 5 and 6, so that when the cuff is in its inoperative position as seen in FIG. 5, it tends to hug closely against the overlapped portion of back piece 22, and when the cuff is in the operative position as seen in FIG. 6, it tends to neatly close off the open lower end of the tubular sleeve S.

The fastening means which includes button 34 and buttonhole 42 also cooperates to keep the cuff in the closed position as seen in FIGS. 4 and 6. While the fastening means are specifically shown in the form of a button and buttonhole, it will be readily understood that other means such as snaps or hooks may be used, and the buttonhole 42 may be provided where the button is and vice versa. If the button 34' is carried on the seamed portion of the cuff 36', then preferably the button is arranged to be disposed between cuf 36 and the overlapped portion of the rback piece 22 so that it is effectively hidden when the cuff is in its inoperative position, as illustrated in FIG. 7.

The layout in FIG. 2 illustrates an intermediate condition of the assemblage of the elements of the leg construction, and assists in understanding the manner of forming, or manufacture of the construction. As shown, portions of the front piece and the rear piece 22, and the hem 32 are illustrated prior to being folded and sewn. The hem 40 is shown as already formed and secured by a line of stitching 40a. The hem 32 is to be secured by a line of stitching at 32a. The inwardly inclined, or tapered, sections that are joined to define seam portions 24a and 26a r are clearly shown in the layout of FIG. 2. In following through on the construction, the upper portion of rear piece 22 is folded back along the line 30, the hem 32 is folded and stitched at 32a, and the seams 24u, 26a and 26 are then formed by stitching along the respective lines as illustrated by the broken lines in FIG. 2. From the foregoing description it will be evident to one skilled in the art as to how the construction is sewn together, after which each sleeve S is pulled inside out so that the seamed portions 24 and 26 are located within the sleeve S.

While there has been shown and described a particular embodiment of this invention, it will be obvious to those 4- skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the invention and, therefore, it is intended in the appended claims to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is:

1. A convertible leg construction for pajamas and the like comprising, in combination: a pajama leg, two elongated pieces of stretchable material joined at longitudinal edge seams to provide an elongated tubular anklet sleeve that is attached at one end to said pajama leg and is circumferentially stretchable in a direction transversely of said longitudinal edge seams, the length of the sleeve being such as to provide a foot-receiving sock element when the sleeve is extended to its full length, the other end of the sleeve defining thereon an elongated cuff having one longitudinal edge thereof integral with one of the two pieces pieces of material that define the sleeve, the cuff having longitudinal ends attached to spaced portions of the sleeve at seams that are extensions of the said longitudinal edge seams, said longitudinal ends and seams of the cuff extending axially of the sleeve and tapering inwardly from the free edge of the cuff to the edge of the cuff that is integral with the sleeve, said seam lines at the ends of the cuff being spaced from each other so as to provide that the elongated cuff is longitudinally stretchable with the circumferentially stretchable sleeve, the length of the free edge of the cuff extending along substantially onehalf of the circumferential periphery of the sleeve, the cuff being manipulatable -between a first, stored-away position in which it is retroverted adjacent the exterior of the sleeve so as not to obstruct the open other end of the tubular sleeve and so as to permit the stretchable sleeve and cuff to contract to form a neat anklet-cuffing for the pajama leg, and a second, sleeve-closing position where the cuff extends across the open other end of the sleeve to close same, and means including the inwardly tapered seams at the ends of the cuff cooperating with the cuff and sleeve tending to maintain the cuff both in said first position in a neatly stored-away condition as part of the anklet of the pajama leg and in said second position which permits of extension of the anklet sleeve to serve as a foot-receiving sock.

2. A construction as in claim 1 wherein said last named means includes a fastening element carried on said cuff intermediate its ends, and disposed between the cuff and the sleeve when the cuff is in said first position.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,365,526 1/1921 Milkes 2-270 2,546,057 3/1951 Bodin et al 2--270 2,677,130 5/1954 OHayer 2-270 X 2,705,326 4/ 1955 Lahnstein et al. 2--83 2,775,771 l/ 1957 Heilbronner 2-270 3,111,676 11/1963 Artzt et al 2--270 X JORDAN FRANKLIN, Primary Examiner.

H. HUNTER, Examiner. 

